PERSONAL SHOPPER; Setting a Festive Scene For the Big Countdown

By Marianne Rohrlich

Published: December 21, 2006

HOLD the dinner plates and soup bowls on New Year's Eve, a night reserved for hors d'oeuvres and desserts. Hosts can get away with serving nothing but caviar and fancy sweets, washed down with Champagne. But proper accouterments are important -- paper and plastic will not do on Dec. 31.

1. Lido glassware for wine or Champagne comes rimmed in gold or platinum. The glasses, made in Italy, are $26 each from wshome.com or (888) 922-4108.

2. Porcelain bowls for little nibbles or special desserts are decorated with 14-karat gold glaze, but they can go in the dishwasher. They come in various designs, in matte and shiny gold; $28 each from anthropologie.com or (800) 309-2500.

3. Desserts can be served on a 12-inch ceramic platter decorated with Audubon prints ($198) and a set of four eight-inch-round plates, each with a different pattern ($328). The limited-edition set by Richard Ginori, an Italian manufacturer, is available at brooksbrothers.com or (800) 274-1815.

4. A stainless steel caviar server with a six-ounce glass bowl inside can be used for shrimp cocktail if you don't like caviar; $29.95 from surlatable.com or (866) 328-5412.

5. Forte Tritan crystal Champagne flutes are made with titanium and zirconium instead of lead, so they are less breakable than ordinary crystal glasses. A set of six is $59.50 from surlatable.com or (866) 328-5412.

6. A 13-inch-diameter white ceramic platter with an embossed design is $19, and a set of four matching plates is $36; westelm.com or (888) 922-4119.

7. Bowls that look as if they are made of shiny foil are 8 inches high and 12 inches wide; $29.95 each at cb2.com or (800) 606-6252.

8. A self-balancing serving tray that can be carried with one hand has a stainless steel frame and a 16-inch-diameter plastic tray that comes in green or blue; $65 at mxyplyzyk.com or (800) 243-9810.

9. An oversize neon-green plastic Champagne cooler, designed by Marc Newson for Dom Perignon, is from an edition of 1,000. The 27-inch-high cooler is $1,000 at Moss; mossonline.com or (866) 888-6677.

10. Christofle's silver-plated straws are just right for sipping Champagne straight out of a split. A pair is $115 from vivre.com or (800) 411-6515.

Photos (Photos by Lars Klove for The New York Times [8]; Tony Cenicola/The New York Times [10].)